Streaming digital content with content metadata

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems are provided for streaming digital content. A content stream and metadata relating to the content stream are provided, and the content stream is encrypted with an encryption dependent on at least some of the metadata to provide an encrypted content stream. The metadata is embedded in readable form in the encrypted content stream and the encrypted content stream is transmitted together with the metadata in readable form such that the metadata is readable during transmission of the encrypted content stream and the readable metadata necessary for use in decryption of the encrypted content stream is provided.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to streaming digital content and, morespecifically, streaming digital content with content metadata whilemaintaining the integrity of the content metadata.

With digital streaming technology becoming more prevalent, suppliers ofdata have to protect their data source and usually encrypt the databeing streamed. Typically, an encrypted digital stream is transmittedfrom supplier to end user through an insecure channel of an eco-systemof a series of Internet Service Providers (ISPs). As the channel isinsecure, the ISPs do not have access to the data as encrypted data byits very nature does not have the ability to carry any visible data.Therefore, ISPs are unable to gain insight of the content of theencrypted data.

SUMMARY

According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided acomputer-implemented method for streaming digital content, comprising:providing a content stream and metadata relating to the content stream;encrypting the content stream with an encryption dependent on at leastsome of the metadata to provide an encrypted content stream; embeddingthe metadata in readable form in the encrypted content stream; andtransmitting the encrypted content stream together with the metadata inreadable form such that the metadata is readable during transmission ofthe encrypted content stream and the readable metadata necessary for usein decryption of the encrypted content stream is provided.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is providedcomputer-implemented method for streaming digital content, comprising:receiving a transmitted encrypted content stream together with metadatain readable form enabling reading of the metadata during transmission;extracting the metadata in readable form to provide extracted metadatafor use in decryption; decrypting the encrypted content stream with adecryption being dependent on at least some of the readable form of themetadata; and outputting a content stream of content associated withverified metadata.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provideda system for streaming digital content, comprising: a processor and amemory configured to provide computer program instructions to theprocessor to execute the function of components including: a contentstream providing component providing a content stream and a metadataproviding component for providing metadata relating to the contentstream; an encryption engine for encrypting the content stream with anencryption dependent on at least some of the metadata to provide anencrypted content stream; and an embedding component for embedding themetadata in readable form in the encrypted content stream; and atransmitting component for transmitting the encrypted content streamtogether with the metadata in readable form such that the metadata isreadable during transmission of the encrypted content stream and thereadable metadata necessary for use in decryption of the encryptedcontent stream is provided.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is providedsystem for streaming digital content, comprising: a processor and amemory configured to provide computer program instructions to theprocessor to execute the function of components including: a receivingcomponent for receiving transmitted encrypted content stream togetherwith the metadata in readable form enabling reading of the metadataduring transmission; an extraction component for extracting the metadatain readable form to provide extracted metadata for use in a decryptionengine; a decryption engine for decrypting the encrypted content streamwith a decryption being dependent on at least some of the readable formof the metadata; and a content output component for providing a contentstream of content associated with verified metadata.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provideda computer program product for streaming digital content, the computerprogram product comprising a computer readable storage medium havingprogram instructions embodied therewith, the program instructionsexecutable by a processor to cause the processor to: provide a contentstream and metadata relating to the content stream; encrypt the contentstream with an encryption dependent on at least some of the metadata toprovide an encrypted content stream; embed the metadata in readable formin the encrypted content stream; and transmit the encrypted contentstream together with the metadata in readable form such that themetadata is readable during transmission of the encrypted content streamand the readable metadata necessary for use in decryption of theencrypted content stream is provided.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provideda computer program product for streaming digital content, the computerprogram product comprising a computer readable storage medium havingprogram instructions embodied therewith, the program instructionsexecutable by a processor to cause the processor to: receive atransmitted encrypted content stream together with metadata in readableform enabling reading of the metadata during transmission; extract themetadata in readable form to provide extracted metadata for use indecryption; decrypt the encrypted content stream with a decryption beingdependent on at least some of the readable form of the metadata; andoutput a content stream of content associated with verified metadata.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed outand distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification.The invention, both as to organization and method of operation, togetherwith objects, features, and advantages thereof, may best be understoodby reference to the following detailed description when read with theaccompanying drawings.

Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described,by way of example only, with reference to the following drawings inwhich:

FIGS. 1A and 1B are flow diagrams of example embodiments of encryptionand decryption aspects of a method in accordance with the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 2 is schematic diagram illustrating an example embodiment of amethod in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of an example embodiment of an encryptionaspect of a method in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of an example embodiment of a decryption aspectof a method in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a more detailed exampleembodiment of a method in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are schematic diagrams illustrating further details ofaspects of an example embodiment of a method in accordance with thepresent disclosure;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are schematic diagrams illustrating further details ofaspects of an example embodiment of a method in accordance with thepresent disclosure;

FIGS. 8A and 8B are block diagrams of example embodiments of encryptionand decryption aspects of a system in accordance with the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a computer system or cloudserver in which the present disclosure may be implemented;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a cloud computing environment in whichthe present disclosure may be implemented; and

FIG. 11 is a diagram of abstraction model layers of a cloud computingenvironment in which the present disclosure may be implemented.

It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration,elements shown in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale.For example, the dimensions of some of the elements may be exaggeratedrelative to other elements for clarity. Further, where consideredappropriate, reference numbers may be repeated among the figures toindicate corresponding or analogous features.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

There an opportunity for fraudsters to take a paid-for stream of digitaldata and then forward it on many times, charging the users a small costfor the illegal copy. Further, some authorities want to know what is ina data stream without decrypting it.

The challenge is to help the eco-system of ISPs identify content whilestill providing encryption. ISPs may be able to spot traffic patternsbut otherwise they have limited visibility of the content. It istherefore advantageous for ISPs to have visibility about more aspects ofthe encrypted data stream whilst maintaining security integrity. Thiswould enable an ISP to know what an encrypted data stream relates to,for example, it might be a live football match with licensingconsiderations.

If plain text metadata is included with the encrypted data streamproviding information about the encrypted data stream, a fraudster canmerely replace the existing metadata with their own metadata, passingthe stream off as their own.

The described method and system provide a digital content stream that issent securely in encrypted form from a transmitting system to areceiving system. The digital content stream has associated metadatarelating to the content that is readable during transmission of thedigital content stream in order for parties handling the transmissionand receipt to identify the content of the digital content stream.

The digital content stream may include media such as video and/or audiodata that may be transferred at a steady high-speed rate. The digitalcontent stream may be transmitted by a provider and received andpresented to an end-user for playing using a media player. Livestreaming is the delivery of content in real time via a network such asthe Internet. A content delivery network may distribute and deliver thecontent.

The encryption of the digital content stream is carried out by anencryption process that is dependent on at least part of the readablemetadata thereby binding the encrypted content with the readablemetadata in order to prevent tampering with the readable metadata.

The encrypted content stream may include the readable metadata as aplain text component which is required to be present for successfuldecryption of the encrypted content stream. If the plain text is removedfrom the data stream or altered, the decryption cannot complete, as theencrypted data is dependent on the content metadata. The plain textcomponent may be provided at intervals in the encrypted content stream.As an alternative to the content metadata being provided as a plain textcomponent, the content metadata may be provided as an image or computerreadable component.

A content provider may transmit a secure content stream and providecontent metadata for an ISP eco-system to identify the content withoutthe need to decrypt the secure content stream.

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, flow diagrams 100, 110 illustrate exampleembodiments of the described method as carried out at a content streamtransmitter system and at a content stream receiver system.

FIG. 1A shows an example method at a content stream transmitter system.A content stream may be provided 101 with metadata provided 102 relatingto the content stream. The metadata may be associated with descriptiveinformation about the digital data, such as content providerinformation, content description, licensing information, etc.

The content stream may be provided in an already encrypted form (inwhich case a double encryption may result) or in a form ready forencryption. The provision of metadata may be carried out separately froman initial encryption of the content stream, in which case, the providedcontent stream may be an encrypted content stream.

The method may encrypt 103, or further encrypt if the content is alreadyin encrypted form, the content stream with the encryption beingdependent on at least some of the metadata. The encryption may bedependent on the entire metadata, for example, by incorporating themetadata into the content stream. Alternatively, the encryption may bedependent on only part of the metadata, such as a defined length of datathat is required for the reading and intelligibility of the metadata.The resultant encrypted content stream that is transmitted is reliant onthe metadata.

The encryption in a form dependent on at least some of the metadata maybe carried out by a variety of methods. In one embodiment, the metadatamay be provided in the data encryption cycle, and the encrypted data isdependent on the incorporated metadata. This method may incorporate themetadata throughout the content stream and therefore no part of thecontent stream may be extracted. An example embodiment of a dataencryption cycle method is a block cipher that encrypts block by block,with encryption of any block depending on a previous block.

In another embodiment, the metadata or a portion of the metadata may beincorporated into a secret key used for the encryption such thatdecryption is only possible if the metadata is correspondinglyincorporated into a secret key used for decryption. As the metadata willbe public, some form of salt or random data may be required asadditional input to provide added defense to the encryption.

The metadata in readable form, referred to as public metadata, may beembedded 104 in the encrypted content stream.

The public metadata may be provided at intervals in the encryptedcontent stream such that it is available during transmission if onlypart of the stream is intercepted. The skilled person would understandthat the term “readable” would mean that the metadata is made publicduring transmission of the encrypted content stream in a manner in whichit is intelligible to third parties. The readable form may be humanreadable, such as a plain text or an image, or computer readable. If thereadable form is computer readable, it may be translatable into humanreadable form by any interested third parties.

The public metadata may be the same metadata repeated at intervals inthe encrypted content stream or may comprise several different sectionsof metadata each including different metadata. For example, a firstsection with a description of the content, a second section withprovider information, and a third section with licensing information,with the three sections repeating in a cycle in the encrypted contentstream. In a further option, the public metadata may change as it isprovided at intervals in the encrypted content stream. The intervals maybe regular or varied in the encrypted content stream.

In an embodiment in which the metadata is included in the dataencryption cycle, the encrypted metadata may be provided in theencrypted stream in addition to the public metadata to provide a datastream comprising encrypted content data, encrypted metadata and publicmetadata. Alternatively, the encrypted metadata may be replaced by thepublic metadata to provide a data stream comprising encrypted contentdata and public metadata.

The method may transmit 105 the encrypted content stream together withthe public metadata in readable form. In this way, the metadata isreadable during transmission of the encrypted content stream byinterested parties and the public metadata necessary for use indecryption of the encrypted content stream is provided. The encryptedcontent stream is fatally compromised if the public metadata is removedor replaced as it will not be able to be decrypted.

FIG. 1B shows an example method at a content stream receiver system. Anencrypted content stream may be received 111 with readable metadatarelating to the content stream.

The readable metadata may be extracted 112 from the received stream foruse in the decryption method. Depending how the metadata wasincorporated into the encryption method, the extraction may remove themetadata from the received stream or may read it whilst leaving itavailable in the stream for decryption purposes before removing it.

The method may decrypt 113 the encrypted content stream in a mannerdependent on the extracted readable metadata.

In an embodiment in which the metadata is included in the dataencryption cycle, and the encrypted metadata is provided in theencrypted stream in addition to the public metadata, the decryptedmetadata may be compared to the public metadata and both the decryptedmetadata and the public metadata removed from the stream before use ofthe stream.

In an embodiment in which the metadata is included in the dataencryption cycle, and the encrypted metadata has been replaced by thepublic metadata, the public metadata may remain in the encrypted contentstream for use in the decryption until the decryption has been completedand then it may be removed from the stream. The public metadata may beencrypted to provide the encrypted metadata, which was previouslyreplaced by the public metadata, for use in the decryption.

In an alternative embodiment in which the metadata or some of themetadata is incorporated into a secret key used for encryption, thedecryption method may use a corresponding incorporation of the extractedpublic metadata or part of it into a secret key for decryption.

The content stream of decrypted content with the metadata removed may beoutput 114. The decrypted content may require further decryption if theoriginally provided content stream in the method of FIG. 1 was inencrypted form.

Referring to FIG. 2, a schematic diagram 200 illustrates an exampleembodiment of the described method and system.

A metadata embedding system 210 is shown that may be provided at acontent stream transmitter system. A metadata verification system 230 isshown that may be provided at a content stream receiver system.

The metadata embedding system 210 may include an encryption engine 211for encryption of a content stream 212 based on metadata 213 relating tothe content stream. This may result in an intermediate encrypted contentstream 215. Based on the method of encrypting, the intermediate datastream 215 may comprise encrypted content data that is dependent on themetadata and may also include encrypted metadata.

The intermediate data stream 215 may be combined with readable metadata216 by an embedding process 214 to produce a transmittable contentstream 220 formed of an encrypted content stream 221 with embeddedreadable metadata 222. The encryption engine 211 and the embeddingprocess 214 may be carried out simultaneously or in a consecutivemanner.

The transmittable content stream 220 formed of the encrypted contentstream 221 with embedded readable metadata 222 is transmitted with themetadata available to be read during transmission and on receipt at areceiving system.

The metadata verification system 230 may carry out an extraction process231 to extract the readable metadata 233 from the encrypted contentstream to revert to the intermediate encrypted content stream 232. Adecryption engine 234 may decrypt the intermediate content stream 235using the readable metadata 236 to output the content stream 237.

Referring to FIG. 3, a flow diagram 300 shows a specific exampleembodiment of the method of FIG. 1A in which the encryption is dependenton metadata by including the metadata in the data encryption cycle usinga block cipher encryption.

A content stream is provided 301 as well as metadata provided 302relating to the content stream. In order to prevent removal of themetadata, the metadata may be obfuscated 303 by methods such as bydisguising the start and end markings, the length of the metadata, andwhich bits are real metadata. For example, the metadata may haveadditional random data appended to obfuscate 303 the length of themetadata.

The encryption process may split 304 the content data into sections withcontent metadata added between the sections to result in some secretsections (for example, the video content) and some public sections (thereadable content metadata). The content metadata may be repeated anumber of times and interspersed in a regular or irregular arrangementthroughout the content stream.

The encryption process may use a secret key and a block cipher thatencrypts the sections block by block with encryption of any blockdepending on previous block.

A section of the secret data is encrypted 305 and sent to the output. Ifthere is a previous section, the encryption depends 306 on any previoussection. For a first section, there is no previous encrypted metadataand so the encryption does not depend on the metadata but may depend onan Initialization Vector (IV) in the form of an initializing data block.

A section of public metadata is then output 307 as plain text to theoutput, followed immediately by the same metadata encrypted by the blockcipher to provide encrypted metadata 308 that is sent to the output.

The method may loop to encrypt additional secret data sections bydetermining 309 if there is another section of content.

If there is another section, the method loops to encrypt 305 the sectionof the secret content and send it to the output. There is now a previousencrypted metadata section that the encryption 305 depends on. Themethod continues to repeat to again output 307 the public metadata asplain text to the output, followed immediately by the encrypted metadata308 that is sent to the output.

The method may loop to encrypt additional secret data sections bydetermining 309 if there is another section of content.

If there are no more sections of secret content, the method may end 310with the method having output the encrypted content dependent onmetadata with embedded public metadata.

Referring to FIG. 4, a flow diagram 400 shows a specific exampleembodiment of the decryption method of FIG. 1B and which corresponds tothe encryption method of FIG. 3.

The method may receive 401 the encrypted content dependent on metadatawith embedded public metadata as streamed to the destination. Observersmay see encrypted data with portions of public metadata embedded thatcan be read.

The method may detect 402 the public metadata in the stream (forexample, it may have a start delimiter) and the data up until the publicmetadata may be decrypted 402 using a secret key. The public metadatamay be read and stored 403 for use in the decryption.

The data after the public metadata may be decrypted 404. The decryptionof sections of content is dependent on previous sections of metadata.The metadata may be public metadata in plain text that is encrypted andused in the block cipher to decrypt the current section of content.Alternatively, the previous block of encrypted metadata may be used inthe decryption of the current section of content and the decryptedmetadata may also be compared to the plain text metadata to ensure thatthe plain text metadata has not been tampered with. In both cases, themetadata is then removed. The decrypted content may be output 405 as itis obtained.

It is then determined 406 if there is another section of content. If so,the method may repeat to read the public metadata 403 and decrypt thenext section. If there are no more sections of content, the method mayend 407.

A number of alternative variations are possible. In an alternativeembodiment, the encrypted metadata sections may be removed beforetransmission leaving just the encrypted secret data sections and thepublic metadata. The decryption then uses the public metadata, withoutneeding to decrypt it, when decrypting the secret sections dependent onit due to the block cipher.

In all embodiments, the public unencrypted metadata is includedsomewhere in the output stream alongside the encrypted content data, andthe encrypted content data is dependent on the public metadata.

Therefore, if the public metadata is removed or altered the decryptionengine will not be able to identify and decrypt the encrypted version inthe stream thus corrupting the remaining data stream. This in effectforces the metadata to be carried with the content. To further obfuscatethe public aspect some random data may be added to the end of the publicmetadata.

A block cipher is a method of encrypting data in which the data isdivided into equally sized blocks. A cryptographic key and algorithm areapplied to each block of data as a group. The mode of operationrepeatedly applies a cipher's single block operation to securelytransform large amounts of data. An Initialization Vector (IV) is aunique binary sequence that is used to ensure distinct encryptions ofdata encrypted with a cryptographic key. Many block ciphers providemethods in which subsequent blocks are dependent on previous blocks ofencrypted data providing dependency through a data stream. Various typesof block cipher providing this function are known including Cipher BlockChaining (CBC), Propagating Cipher Block Chaining (PCBC), CipherFeedback (CFB), and Output Feedback (OFB).

As an example, CBC provides a method in which each block of data has anExclusive OR (XOR) operation applied with the previous encrypted blockbefore being encrypted. This way each block depends on all the datablocks processed up to that point.

Referring to FIG. 5, a schematic diagram 500 illustrates a specificembodiment of the described method depicting encryption of content dataand metadata using a block cipher method of encryption and decryption.In FIG. 5, a limited number of blocks are shown to illustrate themethod. In practice, the method repeats with a high number of blocks.

In the described method, content data and metadata 510 may be providedand split into sections of content referred to as “secret” and sectionsof metadata referred to as “public”. The notation used is that when“secret” and “public” are written in full (e.g. SECRET1) then this canbe considered plain text content, and when represented by just a singleletter (e.g. S1) this is the corresponding encrypted value.

There are three blocks of data shown, SECRET1 521, SECRET2 522, SECRET3523 and two blocks of metadata PUBLIC1 531, PUBLIC2 532. These areencrypted using a secret key (SKey) 540 and the encryption process 541is illustrated.

SECRET1 521 is encrypted into S1 551, SECRET2 522 is encrypted into S2552, SECRET3 523 is encrypted into S3 553, and so forth. PUBLIC1 531 isencrypted into P1 561 as well as being added in plain text form[PUBLIC1] 571, PUBLIC2 532 is encrypted into P2 562 as well as beingadded in plain text form [PUBLIC2] 572, and so forth. In a block cipher,S2 552 is dependent on previous block P1 561 making it dependent on themetadata. Similarly, S3 553 is dependent on previous block P2 562, andso forth.

The output stream 550 is represented as S1 551, [PUBLIC1] 571, P1 561,S2 552, [PUBLIC2] 572, P2 562, S3 553. Clearly, other combinations ofSN, PUBLICN, [PUBLICN] may be considered. In other variations, [PUBLICN]may be inserted somewhere else other than immediately before PN, therebyobfuscating where PN is in the output stream 550.

The output stream is decrypted using a secret key (SKey) 580 and thedecryption process is illustrated by block 581. The secret encryptionand decryption keys may be a linked key pair as known in many differentcryptographic processes.

The decryption process 581 requires the [PUBLICN] to be intact to beused in the decryption to be compared to the decrypted PN. If it is thesame, then PUBLICN can be ignored during the ensuing decryption of thenext data block.

PUBLICN is identified as being the public metadata by a successfulcomparison, or by delimiters. In order to identify where encryptedmetadata corresponding to public metadata resides, a decrypted P1 may becompared to the public PUBLICN. Alternatively, a delimiter may provide adigital signature that signifies that the following part of the streamis not to be decrypted, as it is the public metadata.

A corruption of PUBLICN can be spotted by a poor comparison and/orchecksums in the stream. The order of the encryption/decryption needs tobe preserved

The decryption process 581 returns the original blocks of data, SECRET1521, SECRET2 522, SECRET3 523 interspersed with the blocks of metadataPUBLIC1 531, PUBLIC2 532. The metadata PUBLIC1 531, PUBLIC2 532 may beseparated out to provide the content stream of SECRET1 521, SECRET2 522,SECRET3 523 that may be streamed at the receiver.

Referring to FIGS. 6A and 6B, schematic diagrams illustrate aspects ofan example embodiment of the described method in which a block cipher isused and in which the encrypted metadata is transmitted as well as thepublic metadata. Again, a limited number of blocks are shown toillustrate the method. In practice, the method repeats with a highnumber of blocks.

FIG. 6A illustrates the example encryption method 600 using a blockcipher. Let the initial content stream=<SECRET1 SECRET2>, with metadataPUBLIC1.

The method interleaves the metadata PUBLIC1 in the content stream tomake <SECRET1 (601) PUBLIC1 (602) SECRET2 (603)>.

Using a block cipher encryption 610 (Ak), with an Initialization Vector611 (IV) and key 612. <SECRET1 (601) PUBLIC1 (602) SECRET2 (603)> isencrypted to <S1 (621) P1 (622) S2 (623)>.

-   -   SECRET1 encrypted to S1 (based on IV and SECRET1). S1=Ak        (SECRET1 ⊕ IV)    -   PUBLIC1 encrypted to P1 (based on S1 and PUBLIC1). P1=Ak        (PUBLIC1 ⊕ S1)    -   SECRET2 encrypted to S2 (based on P1 and SECRET2). S2=Ak        (SECRET2 ⊕ P1)

The readable metadata PUBLIC1 602 is interleaved to create a transmittedstream <S1 (621) P1 (622) PUBLIC1 (602) S2 (623)>.

FIG. 6B illustrates the example decryption method 650 using a blockcipher. The transmitted stream <S1 (621) P1 (622) PUBLIC1 (602) S2(623)> is received.

The transmitted stream is decrypted using a block cipher decryption 630(Bk), with an Initialization Vector 631 (IV) and key 632.

-   -   S1 decrypted to SECRET1 (based on IV and S1). SECTRET1=Bk (S1 ⊕        IV)    -   P1 decrypted to PUBLIC1 (based on S1 and P1). PUBLIC1=Bk (P1 ⊕        S1)    -   Identify next block as PUBLIC1 too, either due to delimiters, or        by seeing that P1 (the previous encrypted block) is decrypted to        the same value PUBLIC1. Therefore ignore PUBLIC1 in the        decryption stream.    -   S2 decrypted to SECRET2 (based on P1 and S2). SECTRET2=Bk (S2 ⊕        P1)

PUBLIC 1 642 is removed from the stream to produce useable stream<SECRET1 (641) SECRET2 (643)>.

If PUBLIC1 602 is corrupted, an error will arise as the decrypted P1(PUBLIC1 642) will not compare with it, or the delimiters will not befound.

In other variations PUBLIC1 may be inserted somewhere else other thanimmediately after P1, thereby obfuscating where P1 is to be found.

Referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B, an alternative example embodiment of ablock cipher method is illustrated. In this example, P1 is nottransmitted in the stream, but only PUBLIC1. However, P1 is required inthe decryption, so it is recovered from PUBLIC1.

FIG. 7A illustrates the example encryption method 700 using a blockcipher equivalent to FIG. 6A with the initial content stream=<SECRET1SECRET2>, with metadata PUBLIC1 and with the method interleaving themetadata PUBLIC1 in the content stream to make <SECRET1 (701) PUBLIC1(702) SECRET2 (703)>.

Using a block cipher encryption 710 (Ak), with an Initialization Vector711 (IV) and key 712. <SECRET1 (701) PUBLIC1 (702) SECRET2 (703)> isencrypted to <S1 (721) P1 (722) S2 (723)> as in FIG. 6A.

In this embodiment, the encrypted metadata P1 722 is replaced by thereadable metadata PUBLIC1 702 to create a transmitted stream <S1 (721)PUBLIC1 (702) S2 (723)>.

FIG. 7B illustrates the example decryption method 750 using a blockcipher. The transmitted stream <S1 (721) PUBLIC1 (702) S2 (723)> isreceived.

The transmitted stream is decrypted using a block cipher decryption 730(Bk), with an Initialization Vector 731 (IV) and key 732.

S1 721 is decrypted to SECRET1 741 (based on IV and S1). The encryptedmetadata P1 722 is necessary to decrypt the secret data S2 723. However,in this embodiment, P1 722 is not transmitted. Instead it is recoveredby encrypting PUBLIC1 702 to obtain P1 752 with the encryption 710 basedon S1 721 and PUBLIC1 702 (P1=Ak (PUBLIC1 ⊕ S1)). The obtained P1 752can then be used to decrypt S2 723 to SECRET2 743.

The described method and system meet ISP requirements of metadatavisibility, without compromising end-to-end maintained securityintegrity.

Blocks or sections of data can only be decrypted if the unencryptedpublic metadata at least (if not the encrypted metadata as well) ispresent and intact. None of the encrypted digital stream can bedecrypted if the public metadata has been tampered with.

The technical solution ensures that the public metadata indicatingdetails of the content, such as the content source, is used in order todecrypt the encrypted digital material.

Referring to FIGS. 8A and 8B, example embodiments of the describedsystem are shown at a content stream transmitter system 800 and acontent stream receiver system 850.

The content stream transmitter system 800 and the content streamreceiver system 850 may each be computing devices that include at leastone processor 801, 851, a hardware module, or a circuit for executingthe functions of the described components which may be software unitsexecuting on the at least one processor. Multiple processors runningparallel processing threads may be provided enabling parallel processingof some or all of the functions of the components. Memory 802, 852 maybe configured to provide computer instructions 803, 853 to the at leastone processor 801, 851 to carry out the functionality of the components.

The content stream transmitter system 800 and the content streamreceiver system 850 may be remote from each other with data contentstreamed between the systems 800, 850 via a network.

Referring to FIG. 8A, the content stream transmitter system 800 mayinclude a metadata embedding system 810 providing the describedfunctionality. The metadata embedding system 810 may be incorporatedinto an encryption system or may be a separate system that embeds themetadata into already encrypted content.

The metadata embedding system 810 may include a content stream providingcomponent 811 for providing a content stream. The content streamproviding component 811 may provide streaming content that is processedby the metadata embedding system 810 as it arrives. The content streamproviding component 811 may provide an already encrypted content streamcapable of further encryption.

The metadata embedding system 810 may include a metadata providingcomponent 812 for providing metadata relating to the content stream. Themetadata may be provided in readable form, which is human readable plaintext or images or is computer readable.

The metadata embedding system 810 may include an obfuscation component813 for obfuscation of the metadata by adjusting a length of themetadata by adding random characters to the metadata.

The metadata embedding system 810 may include an encryption engine 820for encrypting the content stream with the encryption dependent on atleast some of the metadata provided by the metadata providing component812. The encryption engine 820 may use alternative forms of encryptionproviding different embodiments of the described system.

In one embodiment, the encryption engine 820 may include a dataencryption cycle component 821 for encrypting the content stream usingthe metadata in a data encryption cycle. The data encryption cyclecomponent 821 may use a block cipher in which encryption of a section ofdata is dependent on a previous section of data and the content streamis divided into sections and at least some of the metadata is includedin sections interspersed in the sections of the content stream.

In another embodiment, the encryption engine 820 may include a secretkey encryption component 822 for encrypting the content stream using atleast some of the metadata in combination with a secret encryption key.

The metadata embedding system 810 may include an embedding component 830for embedding the metadata in readable form in an encrypted contentstream generated by the encryption engine. The embedding component 830may intersperse the readable metadata in an encrypted content stream fortransmission. The readable metadata may be provided in one or moresections that are repeated, each section including descriptiveinformation relating to the content stream.

The embedding component 830 may include a readable metadata addingcomponent 831 that may add the readable metadata to an encrypted contentstream in addition to any encrypted metadata in the encrypted contentstream.

The embedding component 830 may include an encrypted metadata replacingcomponent 832 for replacing encrypted metadata in the encrypted contentstream with the readable metadata for transmission.

The metadata embedding system 810 may include a transmitting component814 for transmitting the encrypted content stream together with themetadata in readable form such that the metadata is readable duringtransmission of the encrypted content stream and the readable metadatais available for use in decryption of the content stream.

Referring to FIG. 8B, the content stream receiver system 850 may includea metadata verifying system 860 providing the described functionality.The metadata verifying system 860 may be incorporated into a decryptionsystem or may be a separate system that verifies the metadata beforesending still encrypted content to a decryption system.

The metadata verifying system 860 may include a receiving component 861for receiving a transmitted encrypted content stream together withmetadata in readable form enabling reading of the metadata duringtransmission.

The metadata verifying system 860 may include an extraction component870 and a decryption engine 880. The extraction component 870 is forextracting the metadata in readable form for use in the decryptionengine 880. The decryption engine 880 is for decrypting the receivedencrypted content stream with the decryption being dependent on at leastsome of the readable form of the metadata.

The decryption engine 880 may decrypting the content stream with thedecryption dependent on at least some of the readable form of themetadata includes using at least some of the readable form of themetadata in a data decryption cycle.

The decryption engine 880 may use alternative forms of decryptionproviding different embodiments of the described system.

In one embodiment, the decryption engine 880 may include a datadecryption cycle component 881 corresponding to the data encryptioncycle component 821 of an encryption engine 820 of a correspondingcontent stream transmitter system 800.

The data decryption cycle component 881 is for decrypting the receivedcontent stream where a data encryption cycle used the metadata duringencryption. In one version, the data decryption cycle component 881 mayuse at least some of the extracted readable form of the metadata indecryption of the data encryption cycle. In another version, the datadecryption cycle component 881 may use metadata encrypted in theencrypted content stream in a data decryption cycle and verifyingresultant decrypted metadata with at least some of the readable form ofthe metadata.

The data decryption cycle component 881 may decipher a block cipher inwhich encryption of a section of data is dependent on a previous sectionof data and the content stream is divided into sections and at leastsome of the metadata is included in sections interspersed in thesections of the content stream.

In another embodiment, the decryption engine 880 may include a secretkey decryption component 882 for decrypting the content stream using atleast some of the metadata in combination with a secret decryption key.

The metadata verifying system 860 may include a content output component864 for providing a content stream of content with verified metadata.The content stream of content with verified metadata may still beencrypted for further decryption by another decryption system.

FIG. 9 depicts a block diagram of components of the computing devices ofthe content stream transmitter system 800 and content stream receiversystem 850 of FIGS. 8A and 8B, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent disclosure. It should be appreciated that FIG. 9 provides onlyan illustration of one implementation and does not imply any limitationswith regard to the environments in which different embodiments may beimplemented. Many modifications to the depicted environment may be made.

Computing device can include one or more processors 902, one or morecomputer-readable RAMs 904, one or more computer-readable ROMs 906, oneor more computer readable storage media 908, device drivers 912,read/write drive or interface 914, and network adapter or interface 916,all interconnected over a communications fabric 918. Communicationsfabric 918 can be implemented with any architecture designed for passingdata and/or control information between processors (such asmicroprocessors, communications and network processors, etc.), systemmemory, peripheral devices, and any other hardware components within thesystem.

One or more operating systems 910, and application programs 911, such asencryption and decryption engines are stored on one or more of thecomputer readable storage media 908 for execution by one or more of theprocessors 902 via one or more of the respective RAMs 904 (whichtypically include cache memory). In the illustrated embodiment, each ofthe computer readable storage media 908 can be a magnetic disk storagedevice of an internal hard drive, CD-ROM, DVD, memory stick, magnetictape, magnetic disk, optical disk, a semiconductor storage device suchas RAM, ROM, EPROM, flash memory, or any other computer readable storagemedia that can store a computer program and digital information, inaccordance with embodiments of the present disclosure.

Computing device can also include a R/W drive or interface 914 to readfrom and write to one or more portable computer readable storage media926. Application programs 911 on the computing device can be stored onone or more of the portable computer readable storage media 926, readvia the respective R/W drive or interface 914 and loaded into therespective computer readable storage media 908.

Computing device can also include a network adapter or interface 916,such as a TCP/IP adapter card or wireless communication adapter.Application programs 911 on computing device can be downloaded to thecomputing device from an external computer or external storage devicevia a network (for example, the Internet, a local area network or otherwide area networks or wireless networks) and network adapter orinterface 916. From the network adapter or interface 916, the programsmay be loaded into the computer readable storage media 908. The networkmay comprise copper wires, optical fibers, wireless transmission,routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and edge servers.

Computing device can also include a display screen 920, a keyboard orkeypad 922, and a computer mouse or touchpad 924. Device drivers 912interface to display screen 920 for imaging, to keyboard or keypad 922,to computer mouse or touchpad 924, and/or to display screen 920 forpressure sensing of alphanumeric character entry and user selections.The device drivers 912, R/W drive or interface 914, and network adapteror interface 916 can comprise hardware and software stored in computerreadable storage media 908 and/or ROM 906.

The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product at any possible technical detail level of integration.The computer program product may include a computer readable storagemedium (or media) having computer readable program instructions thereonfor causing a processor to carry out aspects of the present invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, configuration data for integrated circuitry, oreither source code or object code written in any combination of one ormore programming languages, including an object oriented programminglanguage such as Smalltalk, C++, or the like, and procedural programminglanguages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programminglanguages. The computer readable program instructions may executeentirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as astand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partlyon a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. Inthe latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user'scomputer through any type of network, including a local area network(LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to anexternal computer (for example, through the Internet using an InternetService Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including,for example, programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gatearrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays (PLA) may execute thecomputer readable program instructions by utilizing state information ofthe computer readable program instructions to personalize the electroniccircuitry, in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the blocks may occur out of theorder noted in the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

Cloud Computing

It is to be understood that although this disclosure includes a detaileddescription on cloud computing, implementation of the teachings recitedherein are not limited to a cloud computing environment. Rather,embodiments of the present invention are capable of being implemented inconjunction with any other type of computing environment now known orlater developed.

Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient,on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computingresources (e.g., networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing,memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that canbe rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort orinteraction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may includeat least five characteristics, at least three service models, and atleast four deployment models.

Characteristics are as follows:

On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provisioncomputing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, asneeded automatically without requiring human interaction with theservice's provider.

Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network andaccessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneousthin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to servemultiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physicaland virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according todemand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumergenerally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of theprovided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher levelof abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).

Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elasticallyprovisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out andrapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilitiesavailable for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can bepurchased in any quantity at any time.

Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimizeresource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level ofabstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can bemonitored, controlled, and reported, providing transparency for both theprovider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models are as follows:

Software as a Service (SaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure.The applications are accessible from various client devices through athin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based e-mail).The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloudinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage,or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exceptionof limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquiredapplications created using programming languages and tools supported bythe provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure including networks, servers, operating systems, orstorage, but has control over the deployed applications and possiblyapplication hosting environment configurations.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to theconsumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and otherfundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy andrun arbitrary software, which can include operating systems andapplications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage,deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networkingcomponents (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models are as follows:

Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for anorganization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party andmay exist on-premises or off-premises.

Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by severalorganizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and complianceconsiderations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third partyand may exist on-premises or off-premises.

Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the generalpublic or a large industry group and is owned by an organization sellingcloud services.

Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or moreclouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities butare bound together by standardized or proprietary technology thatenables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting forload-balancing between clouds).

A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus onstatelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability.At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure that includes anetwork of interconnected nodes.

Referring now to FIG. 10, illustrative cloud computing environment 50 isdepicted. As shown, cloud computing environment 50 includes one or morecloud computing nodes 10 with which local computing devices used bycloud consumers, such as, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA)or cellular telephone 54A, desktop computer 54B, laptop computer 54C,and/or automobile computer system 54N may communicate. Nodes 10 maycommunicate with one another. They may be grouped (not shown) physicallyor virtually, in one or more networks, such as Private, Community,Public, or Hybrid clouds as described hereinabove, or a combinationthereof. This allows cloud computing environment 50 to offerinfrastructure, platforms and/or software as services for which a cloudconsumer does not need to maintain resources on a local computingdevice. It is understood that the types of computing devices 54A-N shownin FIG. 8 are intended to be illustrative only and that computing nodes10 and cloud computing environment 50 can communicate with any type ofcomputerized device over any type of network and/or network addressableconnection (e.g., using a web browser).

Referring now to FIG. 11, a set of functional abstraction layersprovided by cloud computing environment 50 (FIG. 10) is shown. It shouldbe understood in advance that the components, layers, and functionsshown in FIG. 11 are intended to be illustrative only and embodiments ofthe invention are not limited thereto. As depicted, the following layersand corresponding functions are provided:

Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and softwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components include: mainframes 61; RISC(Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture based servers 62;servers 63; blade servers 64; storage devices 65; and networks andnetworking components 66. In some embodiments, software componentsinclude network application server software 67 and database software 68.

Virtualization layer 70 provides an abstraction layer from which thefollowing examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers71; virtual storage 72; virtual networks 73, including virtual privatenetworks; virtual applications and operating systems 74; and virtualclients 75.

In one example, management layer 80 may provide the functions describedbelow. Resource provisioning 81 provides dynamic procurement ofcomputing resources and other resources that are utilized to performtasks within the cloud computing environment. Metering and Pricing 82provide cost tracking as resources are utilized within the cloudcomputing environment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of theseresources. In one example, these resources may include applicationsoftware licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloudconsumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources.User portal 83 provides access to the cloud computing environment forconsumers and system administrators. Service level management 84provides cloud computing resource allocation and management such thatrequired service levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planningand fulfillment 85 provide pre-arrangement for, and procurement of,cloud computing resources for which a future requirement is anticipatedin accordance with an SLA.

Workloads layer 90 provides examples of functionality for which thecloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads andfunctions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping andnavigation 91; software development and lifecycle management 92; virtualclassroom education delivery 93; data analytics processing 94;transaction processing 95; and streaming content encryption anddecryption processing 96.

The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present inventionhave been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intendedto be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Manymodifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skillin the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the describedembodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain theprinciples of the embodiments, the practical application or technicalimprovement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

Improvements and modifications can be made to the foregoing withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for streaming digital content,comprising: a processor and a memory configured to provide computerprogram instructions to the processor to execute the function ofcomponents including: a content stream providing component providing acontent stream and a metadata providing component for providing metadatarelating to the content stream; an encryption engine for encrypting thecontent stream with an encryption dependent on at least some of themetadata to provide an encrypted content stream, wherein the at leastsome of the metadata includes descriptive information relating to thecontent stream; and an embedding component for embedding the metadata inreadable form in the encrypted content stream; and a transmittingcomponent for transmitting the encrypted content stream together withthe metadata in readable form such that the metadata is readable duringtransmission of the encrypted content stream and the readable metadatanecessary for use in decryption of the encrypted content stream isprovided.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is in networkcommunication with a receiving system comprising: an extractioncomponent for extracting the metadata in readable form to provideextracted metadata for use in a decryption engine; and a decryptionengine for decrypting the encrypted content stream with a decryptionbeing dependent on at least some of the readable form of the metadata.3. The system of claim 1, wherein embedding the metadata includesinterspersing the readable metadata in multiple sections in theencrypted content stream, each section including descriptive informationrelating to the content stream.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein theencrypting the content stream with an encryption dependent on at leastsome of the metadata includes using the metadata in a data encryptioncycle.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the encrypting the contentstream with an encryption dependent on at least some of the metadataincludes using at least some of the metadata in combination with asecret encryption key.
 6. The system of claim 4, wherein the dataencryption cycle is a block cipher in which encryption of a section ofdata is dependent on a previous section of data and wherein the contentstream is divided into sections and at least some of the metadata isincluded in sections interspersed in the sections of the content stream.7. The system of claim 6, further comprising an obfuscation componentfor obfuscating the metadata in the content stream.
 8. The system ofclaim 5, wherein the data encryption cycle generates encrypted metadatathat is transmitted in addition to the readable metadata.
 9. The systemof claim 5, wherein the data encryption cycle generates encryptedmetadata that is replaced by the readable metadata for transmission. 10.The system of claim 1, wherein providing a content stream provides analready encrypted content stream capable of further encryption.
 11. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the descriptive information relating to thecontent stream includes content provider information, contentdescription, and licensing information.